Inside Out Outdoors

I wanted to share with our readers a couple of new rod and reel rigs that I bought for my fishing trip to NY at the start of August.  I headed to Bass Pro Shops when I got into town and spent a couple of hours looking over all of the rods and reels that they had to offer.  After I decided my best option was to build my own combo, I chose the following:

Rod
Bass Pro Shops 6'6" medium-action Tourney Special IM-7 Graphite :

Pros:
- Price, they run around $50 and can be found on sale for as low as $30.
- Multiple configurations (spinning and baitcast options)
- Many lengths and actions available
- Solid overall construction

Cons:
- The only complaint I have - and this is really nothing against the rod - was that they did not have a two piece rod in stock.  I tend to lean towards two piece rods as they are easier to travel with.  Overall this is a great buy and the reviews on the Bass Pro website say the same!

I bought two of these and then set out to find a couple of reels to outfit the rods with.  Both reels I bought ran about 30-40 dollars each, making each combo come in around $100.

Reels
1) Diawa 3550 Sweepfire with a rear drag option
2) Shimano Sienna 4000RD

Things I liked about these reels were the following:
- Rear drag; I prefer a rear drag system when fishing with live bait as it makes adjusting the drag much easier
- Anti-reverse
- Very smooth

For the price I don't think I could have made a better decision with these do-it-yourself combos!  I took them to the lake and put them right to work catching both trout and bass on them.  I enjoyed them very much and would recommend any of the reviewed items above, so if you have any questions about the rod or reels, please let me know!

-Paul Nicolucci

This off-season has been one that has seen me not really buy a bunch of hunting stuff, which is not the norm.  However, the few items I have bought and will be buying in the next few days before the season opener are very important in the grand scheme of things and I'll be highlighting my new toys in the days leading up to September 10th.  First up are my new binoculars and the harness system I bought for them, so let's get right to it.

I've been in need of a good, reliable set of binoculars for a while now.  I've usually just settled for the small, cheap ones and considering how little I have used them,  they have always been adequate for the terrain I hunt.  However, I've always wanted to get a better set, especially for when I finally make my daydream Western hunts become a reality, and decided that this would be the year I would take the plunge into better optics.  Since spending Zeiss and Swarovski like money at this point in time was out of the question, I turned to glass that I knew gave the best quality for the money:  Nikon and Leupold.  After searching around online for good deals on these brands in 10x42 configurations, along with others such as Bushnell, Vortex and Zen Ray, I was set on just waiting one more year before dropping any money.  That's when I just happened to walk into Bass Pro Shops and ran across a deal on Leupold Acadia's I just couldn't pass up at the time ($180 after taxes for those wondering).  After giving them the look over and testing them in the store, I was sold and walked out the door with my first set of quality binoculars.  They may not be Gold Rings, but so far I love the clarity of their glass and have found that the low-light pick-up is pretty dang good (haven't had them out in the woods yet though).

Pros
-Good deal compared to other, similar optics in that quality/magnification range
-Twist eye-cups provide great relief both when I do and don't wear my glasses
-Multi-coated lenses
-Waterproof
-Very good glass for the price paid

Cons
-Lens caps are cheap and don't stay on
-Straps that came with it are flimsy and not worth using

To combat the low-quality straps that came with the Leupolds, as well as not wanting to put the binoculars on my Redhead harness (which never worked as good as I had planned), the final item I needed in my quest for new binoculars was a quality harness system.  I was looking hard at the Crooked Horn Outfitters system when I ran across S4 Gear and their Lockdown system.  After giving them a look over in the store, I was sold!  I did wait a few weeks though, to make sure I didn't find something else that was better.  I didn't of course and ended up grabbing the last of the Large Lockdown System at BPS this past Friday.  One quick note:  Make sure you grab the right size you need for your binoculars as they have a Micro size as well.  I actually grabbed both sizes and tried them with a set of binoculars in the store to make sure the Large is that what I needed for the Acadias.  Once home, all it took was a few minutes to get the harness set-up and my binoculars on them.  So far so good from the small amount of walking around I did with harness system on, the real test will come in two weeks however.

Pros
-Once fitted, harness stays tight to the body (so far)
-Binoculars stay protected when you are not using them
-Easy, one-handed "operation"
-Binoculars stay in place while walking i.e. no bouncing (again, so far)

Cons
-A little expensive IMHO at $40
-Bulkier when compared to other harness systems I've seen (but for not bouncing around as well as optics being protected, I can live with it)

I'll probably write up a quick response to this post in the coming months as we get into deer season and I am out using both of these more, so be on the lookout for that whenever the time comes for me to tell you whether these are good purchases or not.  Until then, check out the pictures I took of them below and by all means, let me know if you have any experience with either!

-C.B.

Since Chris thought it was more important to be on the lake wakeboarding than sweating in the humid, North Carolina Summer woods, Paul and I set out for our new hot spot on Butner-Falls of Neuse to prep stand sites for the upcoming bow opener.  Turns out filming different things takes up more time than you realize when you factor in shot setup and break-down, so we only were able to trim one camera setup (wasn't even one of the spots we set out to do, completely new place we found while walking around).  During all this I took some pics, so here they are.  Be sure to tell me what you think, both the good and the bad.  I can handle it, I promise.

-C.B.

A while back I talked about finding some of my writings from high school.  It may come as no surprise that many of these focused on hunting or the like, so I have decided to transpose these and share them with you via our blog.  This particular one is a short open letter to Ernest Hemmingway (You can tell my writing wasn't polished yet!):

Note:  This was written way back in fresman year of high school, as you will be able to tell.  I would just like to say that it got me an A-!  Hey, gotta brag a little...

"Beep, beep, beep, bee..."  That's how my morning started out one early November day.  It was the day after Thanksgiving, a historic day for me.  As I woke up, I felt a brisk chill to the cool Fall air.  "What a perfect day for deer hunting." I said to myself.

As I got up, so did my dad, grandpa and our friend Matt.  I felt so tired when I had awakened that I did not even feel hungry.  So, after I skipped breakfast, I put on my hunting clothes and, after waiting on my guardians, off we went.  As we headed towards public land in Lancaster County, South Carolina, my dad asked, "Are you finally gonna' kill one?"  I replied with, "Yeah, and it's going to be a big buck!"  "Well, I hope you sure do." said my grandpa.  After our little conversation, we reached our destination and got our hunting gear together.

As we started down the long road bed towards the cut-off, we joined Matt, who had gotten there before us, and started talking.  "Where are you going to hunt?" my dad asked Matt.  "I think I'll hunt in that gully where I've seen deer before." replied Matt.  "Where are you going to put Cory?" asked my grandpa.  "I think I'll put him in a pine near the road, while I'll be on the other side of him down in the gully below there towards the thick pines." my dad said.  As we kept on walking, Matt broke off and I asked my grandpa where he was going to hunt that morning.  He said that he was going to hunt the creek bottom below me in the thick pines.  When we had finally gotten to my tree, I was exhausted.  After I climbed the tree and got everything situated, I settled in and started waiting.

At about 7:09 or 7:10 a.m., I got cold, so I put on my blaze orange toboggan.  About two minutes after I put it on, I noticed a deer coming straight at me from the cut-off.  I also noticed that it was a buck!  When he was within 50 or 60 yards from me, I found a hole to shoot through.  Kablaam!  A shot rang out from my .243 over the morning silence.  He ran about 20 more yards and a final shot put him down for good.  There he lay beside my tree after a 10 or 20 yard run.  Needless to say, I was shaking all over from the excitement!

As I looked down at him, I knew I had accomplished a great feat.  After all the shaking, I said to myself, "Wow, what a deer!"  Right after I said that, at 7:30, another deer came through.  This deer was an even BIGGER buck, but somehow I managed to stay cool.  When he cut down a different fork of the same trail the other deer had taken, Kablaam!  I shot him.  Kablaam!  Another shot rang out!    After that, I realized I was out of bullets.  All while he was laying in the cut-off, a mere 50 yards from me, bleeding from his side and sucking air!  As I tried to reload, he got to his feet and trotted off right as I was taking aim.  To say I was mad is an understatement!

At 10:00 a.m., my dad came.  "Did you get that big buck?" he asked excitedly.  "I don't know.  I shot him though." I replied.  "Well, did you get anything else?" he yelled from below me.  "Yeah, I think it's a three or five pointer." I said.  "Well, where's he at?"  I pointed right beside him.  To me, it seemed like my dad was the happiest out of the two of us.

While he gutted the deer, Matt and I looked for the other deer.  To make a long story short, the bigger buck was never found after hours of searching.  Even though I was upset that we weren't able to find the other deer, I still was glad to have gotten my five pointer.  Yet it makes me sad to think that many anti-hunting activists would like to take this joy away from me and others.

-C.B.

I bought a Browning BPS about two years ago that was coated with Dura Touch, the coating that Browning uses to place a camo pattern on their firearms.  I've only shot about 50 rounds through this gun, which I use as a dedicated slug gun mainly for deer.  I shot the BPS this past weekend and after cleaning the gun I noticed that the coating was peeling away at the muzzle of the barrel. 

I can only attribute this to the coating not holding up against the powder solvents that are used to clean the inside of the barrel.  Unfortunately, after a quick Google search, I found that many folks have had this same issue; some have sent it back to Browning but have been told that this is due to "normal wear and tear".  I'm pretty disappointed with this and am currently looking into an alternative company to have this barrel dipped in the same camo pattern, in a coating that is more durable. 

I'll let you know after the upcoming season who I decide to go with and just how good it holds up.  I'd like to hear from others if they have experienced similar issues with Dura Touch coatings, so leave a comment below!

-Paul Nicolucci

Even a cramped storage closet and bad lighting couldn't stop me from getting the second part of my scent control video blog series out to you guys.  I pretty much covered everything I do when it comes to clothing and equipment and hope that it gives some new ideas and tips to everyone.  Watch it and leave a comment, you know you want to!

-C.B.

I mentioned in this past weeks video blog "Scent Control - My OCD:  It's All About the Body" that I make my own scent away spray now.  I had originally found the recipe in Field & Stream years ago and just never got around to making any.  So without further ado, he is the recipe, via Field & Stream, that I use:

Ingredients
2 cups (16 oz) 3% Hydrogen Peroxide
2 cups (16 oz) Distilled Water
1/2 (.5) cup Baking Soda
1 oz Unscented Shampoo or Soap (I prefer a clear type of the scent killing kind)

Process
Gently combine all the ingredients in a large bowl until the baking soda dissolves. Pour this mixture into a 1-gallon lidded container, such as a milk jug. Let it sit for three days with the lid on loosely to allow gases to escape.

Bottle
Fill a plastic bottle that has a trigger sprayer with the scent killer. It must be clean, so buy a new one from a hardware store or online (usplastics.com).

Want to make your own wipes?  Just follow the Field & Stream link above to read how.  You can also check out this thread on Archerytalk.com for other recipe ideas.  Now what if you also want to make your own cover scents?  Well if you head on over to NCHuntandFish.com, forum member Rye has a started a thread on how he makes his own as well as where he buys the essential oils from.  Hopefully this helps you guys out who use scent away sprays and cover scents religiously.

-C.B.

Just wanted to share something I've been meaning to for a few weeks now.  In this internet age, a lot of us have come to like how easy it is to buy licenses, obtain maps and information and apply for draw hunts.  While many states have been doing this for years now, NC has finally allowed you to apply for permit hunts online.  If you are like me and know more about the NCWRC's computer system than the person working it at your local sporting goods store, then this is a time saver and way less stressful.  So head on over to the NCWRC's home page and click on the button on the side that says "Permit Hunt Opportunities Apply Online".  Hopefully I'll see you out there this season!

-C.B.